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Wraiths of Epochs
The Wraiths of Epochs are a Legacy that deal with the past and its remnants. The Wraith of Epochs haunt the crossroads of past and present, cultivating an aching awareness of everything lost. Ultimately, this awareness transforms them into its embodiment, accelerating the dissolution of flesh to spirit as they assume aspects of the restless dead. From an adversarial standpoint, Wraiths violently oppose the Cult of the Doomsday Clock, whose calculated disruptions threaten the past as much as the future. Mindset Even as magic withers since the Fall, the works of man give more cause for despair. For every wizard who marvels at the technological triumphs of the 21st Century, there are those who lament such ubiquitous power, bitterly wondering what value their hard-earned rotes hold when anyone might fly or speak to another across the expanse of continents or lay waste to nations with forces wrested from radiant ores. What was once wondrous has become commonplace, no longer a reward of singular genius and invincible will. Worst of all, these advances threaten magic itself by offering mages quick-and-dirty alternatives to their Arcana. While such pessimistic elitism is not uncommon among mages, most eventually reconcile themselves with some facet of modernity, or else ennui consumes them utterly. Far fewer have the emotional fortitude to fully embrace the power and burden of the past, challenging perceived inconsequence by crafting their souls in the likeness of history's echoes. From the Fall of Atlantis, they lingered among its ruins as living ghosts, anchoring themselves to the ideals of reminisced greatness. Despite their reputation, the Wraiths of Epochs do not reject technology out of ignorance or geriatric rigidity, and they aren't inherently antagonistic to every invention on principle. Rather, their philosophy lays blame at the convenience of technology to distract mages from exploring their own power, thereby atrophying what magic remains in the world. Raised in an age of cell phones and rockets, most Wraiths fully comprehend the seductive lure of the modern. The Legacy draws new members from those willing to surrender conveniences for deeper truths. In the eyes of Wraith luminaries, mages unable or unwilling to make such ascetic sacrifices lack the devotion to advance in the Legacy's mysteries. Because of their myopic focus, the Wraiths of Epochs find few recruits. It is not enough that a potential Wraith be enamored of history, as so many mages are. A disciple must also reject the modern world so fiercely that he is willing to cut himself off from its advances. Such rejection can stem from disgust or horror or even an irresistible longing for a better and purer time. Whatever the motivation, candidates must endure extensive trials to test their commitment before a Wraith will help them craft their souls. These tests begin simply enough, initially intended to inconvenience and annoy. If the candidate persists, successive trials gradually sever him from the aspects of modernity he most values. Only when a mage fully divests himself of distractions and embraces a lifestyle of contemplative isolation can he make the final sacrifice, forsaking future for past as he gives up happiness, prosperity and the comforting illusion that he matters in the grand design of the universe. Category:Legacy (MTAw)